The Royal Liverpool Philharmonic’s eclectic programme for the penultimate Prom of the summer bore the stamp of Domingo Hindoyan, who took over as chief conductor two years ago and has been expanding its repertoire in new directions. The two main works, though, were reliable Proms hall-fillers. In Rachmaninov’s Piano Concerto No 3 the soloist was Nobuyuki Tsujii, his playing urgent in the opening movement then densely textured in the second, as if in response to the thick, velvety sound Hindoyan coaxed from the strings during their big melody. Perhaps the finale lacked something of the music’s playfulness, but the robust propulsion of Tsujii’s playing counted for much. Afterwards Hindoyan helped Tsujii (who has been blind since birth) pick his way back through the violins to the piano for his encore – the Concert Etude Op 40 No 1 by Nikolai Kapustin, two minutes of gleefully manic jazziness thrown off by Tsujii with irresistible poise and spark.
With the World Cup beginning on the other side of the Channel, the concert-opener was a topical rarity: Rugby, a short and celebratory 1928 piece by Arthur Honegger. It’s a picture of the exhilaration of an idealised game – no breaks for scrums or throw-ins here – balletic in an angular, Stravinskian way, with melodies that leap and bound. A casual listener wouldn’t have found its subject obvious – but one could say the same tenfold about Clara, a 2021 work by the Mexican composer Gabriela Ortiz receiving its first UK performance. Ortiz’s note explains that her five-movement piece is inspired by the two Schumanns, Clara and Robert, their relationship, and Ortiz’s response to them. But it’s too sidelong and subjective to hear it as the portrait its title suggests. The soundworld of melting, sliding string lines, uneasy harmonies and itchy, insistent percussion is all Ortiz’s own, a world away from either Schumann.
Back on familiar ground, the Symphonic Dances from Bernstein’s West Side Story were snappily played, showcasing some stylish work from the RLPO’s trumpets and percussion. The encore was Alegria by Roberto Sierra, a Puerto Rican composer Hindoyan has been championing, and finally here was an unfamiliar piece where the title was an obvious fit.
• Available on BBC Sounds until 9 October.
